Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Collusion
With all three of the main parties upping the stakes daily with regards to the need for constitutional and institutional reform (of which more later) it was a bit disappointing to read in this morning's Times that nothing has really changed in the big two parties.
The paper tells us that there are plans afoot in the House of Lords to raise the threshold above which parties must report donations from £5,000 to £7,500. The move is opposed by Lord Neill of Bladen, former chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, who said that there was no real justification for the increase.
The Electoral Commission has said: “An increase of this level has the potential to reduce public confidence in the transparency and integrity of political funding.” The Liberal Democrats are the only political party opposing the change. David Howarth, for the party, said that the proposals were “going too far in the direction of reducing transparency”.
The Times explains further:
Under amendments to the Political Parties and Elections Bill, the threshold at which donations to individual MPs and local parties need to be reported would also rise, from £1,000 to £1,500. Mr Wills said that this was to reduce the administrative burden that the process placed on volunteer activists. “We have to be careful about placing burdens on them, putting barriers in the way of this sort of activity, that might discourage these selfless volunteers from giving their time and effort,” he said.
Since the last general election the Conservatives alone have received 179 donations between £5,000.01 and £7,500 that, under the new arrangements, would not have to be declared.
The move is likely to be lucrative for political parties because it means people who want to give anonymously can give larger sums.
The Tories want local parties, which are funded by Lord Ashcroft’s marginal seats campaign, to be able to receive even more cash without declaring it. Jonathan Djanogly, the Shadow justice minister, said that the Tories were “reasonably satisfied” with the national threshold but wanted the local one raised from the £1,500 proposed by the Government to a figure of £3,000.
The Electoral Commission has made clear that it would campaign publicly against such a move.
When Labour and the Tories seek to undermine transparency in this way, it makes you wonder whether they really do understand the prevailing mood of the public.
The paper tells us that there are plans afoot in the House of Lords to raise the threshold above which parties must report donations from £5,000 to £7,500. The move is opposed by Lord Neill of Bladen, former chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, who said that there was no real justification for the increase.
The Electoral Commission has said: “An increase of this level has the potential to reduce public confidence in the transparency and integrity of political funding.” The Liberal Democrats are the only political party opposing the change. David Howarth, for the party, said that the proposals were “going too far in the direction of reducing transparency”.
The Times explains further:
Under amendments to the Political Parties and Elections Bill, the threshold at which donations to individual MPs and local parties need to be reported would also rise, from £1,000 to £1,500. Mr Wills said that this was to reduce the administrative burden that the process placed on volunteer activists. “We have to be careful about placing burdens on them, putting barriers in the way of this sort of activity, that might discourage these selfless volunteers from giving their time and effort,” he said.
Since the last general election the Conservatives alone have received 179 donations between £5,000.01 and £7,500 that, under the new arrangements, would not have to be declared.
The move is likely to be lucrative for political parties because it means people who want to give anonymously can give larger sums.
The Tories want local parties, which are funded by Lord Ashcroft’s marginal seats campaign, to be able to receive even more cash without declaring it. Jonathan Djanogly, the Shadow justice minister, said that the Tories were “reasonably satisfied” with the national threshold but wanted the local one raised from the £1,500 proposed by the Government to a figure of £3,000.
The Electoral Commission has made clear that it would campaign publicly against such a move.
When Labour and the Tories seek to undermine transparency in this way, it makes you wonder whether they really do understand the prevailing mood of the public.
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When Labour and the Tories seek to undermine transparency in this way, it makes you wonder whether they really do understand the prevailing mood of the public.Yes, business as usual.
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